3 Is Steele Halloween?
by SteeleHere44
Summary: Story 3. Could it be Halloween as sweet as Mr. Steele wants it to be?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer:

Remington Steele and its characters are owned by MTM. No copyright infringement intended. For entertainment purposes only.

Set after Season 4. Bonds of Steele and Season 5 are not in my universe.

IS STEELE HALLOWEEN?

Chapter 1:

The night was dark and cold, even for that time of the year. The neighborhood children were already in their homes, exhausted after a busy day running from door to door until every resident on the street had made his contribution to each kid's treasured bags. The silence was deafening. The quietness was peaceful. Every year, the end of the day turned out the same way.

Inside the house, a big pumpkin with bright eyes rested beside the front door. Just looking through the side window, the bowl full of candies on the entry table could be appreciated. But it looked suspiciously full.

Expanding the sight, the house had all its lights on although it was pretty late for a weekday. But nobody was behind the windows. There was no movement inside. It looked empty.

All around, Halloween was coming to an end. But in that house, it wasn't started. Yet.

Frances was struggling to convince the kids to save their candies for the next day, sadly for her, without success. Donald was lying on the couch watching a basketball game after a hard day at work. Every mother taking her kids to see Dr. Piper lately had told them to behave on Halloween because if not, the dentist would be angry at them. After the threaten was done, the kids opened their mouths slightly terrified, just wanting to be out of Donald's reach as fast as possible.

Consequently, that put the doctor in need to have the work done in a flash. He could be in a Flash Gordon's disguise the next year, he thought. But maybe trying to be a superhero, instead of a dentist would terrify the kids more.

Once Mindy and Laurie Beth were already in bed keeping their pumpkins full of candies beside them, luckily ready to fall asleep, Frances got out of the bedroom, and leaning on the door, sighed exhaustedly.

Half of the work was done. More than half, in fact. She had been the one at home opening the door to all the Halloween wanderers, handing them their rewards; but at the same time, keeping an eye on her own children asking for their sweets all along the street. The next hard task on her schedule was to convince Danny to turn off the light. He was with his friend Mike, and they were enjoying the Halloween night, the same as they enjoyed the afternoon. They were watching a terror movie in the playroom. When Frances came in, the two boys were on the couch, sitting suspiciously close to each other, their eyes glued to the TV screen. She only had to say, "Kids" and they jumped as if a ghost had entered the room.

"Mom! You scared us!" cried Danny.

"Scared you? I never thought I had such an ugly face!" said Frances, motherly joking. "And I thought you told me that you two were old enough to watch that terror movie without getting scared."

"Well, we weren't expecting you coming into the room, Mom. That's all. We are in the middle of the movie. The vampire is almost in the girl's room…" Danny said a terrifying excitement all over his face.

"Ok. Just call it a night. It's late, the day was long, and you two are going to have a nightmare if you go on watching this movie. Just turn off the TV and go to your room."

The boys obeyed the order, not without whispering a disapproving comment. Once in Danny's room, they lay down on their beds and started to talk about all the exciting things that had happened through the day. Before turning off the light, Mike went to the kitchen to call his mother.

The next day, Frances started her organized routines for breakfast; put down the Halloween material and stacked it in its boxes; took care of the laundry and other domestic tasks, and life started to run as always. But when she brought Mike home later in the afternoon, nobody answered the door. That was unusual. Suzanne was supposed to be at home at this time, she thought. She peered through the side window. Everything looked as frozen in Halloween. The lights were on, the candies were on the table, and all the ornamentation was still in place. It was odd. She decided to make a visit to the next neighbor's house to ask about Suzanne. Nobody seemed to have seen her.

Laura was ready to leave the office, after a long paperwork day. Mr. Steele had been out since lunchtime, attending one of his favorite tasks: Public Relations. There was a convention at The Huntington Sheraton, and with his charm in full swing, he would be able to recruit some potential clients to the Remington Steele Agency.

"I think I'm finished for today, Mildred. Please, don't forget to leave these papers at the post office on your way out."Once delivered, the Wellington's butler case can be considered closed, thought Laura.

Just when she was getting her belongings, ready to leave, the phone rang. "Miss Holt," said Mildred through the intercom. "Your sister wants to talk to you. She seems pretty worried."

"Frances?" asked Laura sighing, a gesture of tiredness appearing on her face. The day full of paperwork had been long, but a worried phone call from her sister was the worst way to end it. "Put her on the phone, Mildred." She put her things back on the desk, sat on her chair, and with all the patience that she was able to find at that point said, "Hello Frances."

After her panicked sister's retelling of the facts, Laura asked, "Why do you suppose she is in trouble, Frances? She could be out doing something, at some neighbor's house, running some errands, you know. The fact that she is not at home exactly at the time she asked you to bring her son back is not a sign that something happened to her. Listen to me; we are going to wait until tonight. If at 9:00pm, she is not at home yet, call me at Mr. Steele's place. Yes, Frances, we are going to have dinner together at his condo. Yes, he is going to cook. I don't know. It'll be a surprise." Just feeling that the conversation was slipping from its boundaries, with Frances exercising her detective training, Laura decided to cut it off. "Look, Frances, I am in a hurry. Call me later. Bye." She put the phone in the cradle and looked at Mildred, who was leaning at the door frame staring at her.

"Everything all right, honey? She sounded distressed." Asked Mildred

"It's nothing critical, Mildred. Danny's friend's mother is not at home, and it seems for Frances that it's a huge drama. She thinks the woman is in danger or something like that. She must be doing some errands or busy at her office, and didn't remember to inform my sister of her schedule and that she was going to be home late. Sometimes Frances is not able to understand the reality of women trying to survive the work field. Mildred, don't forget about the post office. See you tomorrow. Bye." And gathering all her things together again, she left the office. On her way home, she stopped to buy some wine, following the directions Mr. Steele had given her, exactly. He was cooking tonight and wanted the perfect wine to go along with his masterpiece. Nothing was left to Laura's choice. But she was okay with that. He was playing one of the roles that he loved most, and she will be the one enjoying the result of his performance. They would spend a wonderful evening, enjoying a delicious dinner, sided by perfect red wine. Maybe even a chocolate dessert if she was lucky, and who knows, the evening could surprise them with an end in front of the fireplace. Not bad at all. The elevator arrived at the garage, and she was right on the way to her romantic evening.

The wine selection wasn't easy. The winery didn't have the one Mr. Steele wanted, and she was left to follow the wine store owner's recommendation. Laura spent more time than she was supposed to at the store and arrived at the loft in a hurry. She made herself presentable in a flash, and hurried to his place, to be there in time. That meant a lot of driver's rules conveniently being left out for the ride.

Mr. Steele was putting the last touches on his creation when the doorbell rang. He went to answer it, a dishtowel on his shoulder. When he opened the door, Laura was standing there wearing a beautiful black gown, sparkles floating all over it, and her hair down. She looked exquisite. Both of them stared at each other for a second that seemed too long.

"Good evening Mr. Steele," Said Laura. "Can I come in? I brought the wine," she said showing him the bottle in her hands. "Were you able to produce the other half of the dinner in such short notice?" she asked with a mischievous smile.

"Good evening, Laura. Come in! Mmm, you look stunning! Allow me." And making a gesture for her to come in, he took the bottle from her hands. "Mmm… Not my original choice for our menu, but I think it will work. Did you select it?"

"Actually, I didn't. The store owner did. It wasn't easy without knowing what was on the menu, but he said this one is pretty much like the one you asked for."

They were sitting at the romantically settled table, tasting the delights he had in mind for the evening and entangled in a pleasant chat lightened by candlelight between the first and second course when the phone rang. Both faces changed from a pleasant expression to a disappointed one, and without a word, he went to answer the damn thing. It was always the same. Just when they were enjoying a romantic tete a tete, an interruption was in order. And with their luck, the call would be an "ending an evening of pleasure" one, as always. "Steele here. Hello Frances!" He said pretending to sound happy to hear her voice. "Yes, Laura is here. Yes, we are having dinner, yes I did it, yes…" he answered smiling. At that point, Laura realized he was enjoying the conversation with Frances. Feeling that her sister was again playing detective, this time with Mr. Steele as a source, Laura stood up and walked fast to the phone. Without warning, she took the receiver from him, and said, "Hello again, Frances. I realize your carpool partner is not at home yet." And giving him an explaining look, she whispered, "Danny's friend's mother wasn't at home this afternoon, and my sister thinks she is in trouble…" Yes Frances, let me write her name. And looking at him she whispered, "Give me a pen, Mr. Steele! Suzanne Austin. Ok. Frances, I'm going to call Detective Jarvis and ask him if he knows anything about her. But I warn you, there is nothing else to do until tomorrow when I can have Mildred running a search on her. Yes. I'll call you." And with that, she put the phone down and sighed. "It looks that our dessert will have to wait, Mr. Steele."

"It will have to wait?" He said looking disappointed. "Ok. I can wait if you promise it would still be our dessert later!" he answered sketching out a dazzling smile, putting his arms around her waist, pulling her towards him.

"Maybe Jarvis could wait for us just for a moment," said Laura looking straight into his eyes, giving up with the temptation of a kiss.

And when they were in the middle of the way towards a romantic encounter, he realized something and suddenly straightened himself, "Suzanne Austin? That's the name of the woman who was supposed to be the principal speaker at the convention I attended today. She didn't appear. The host didn't know how to apologize to the attendants."

"You didn't say anything about that earlier, Mr. Steele. Why didn't you?"

"I was trying to keep the romance flowing, Laura. I was successful until your sister's interruption. Remind me of that in your next family reunion, please. I'd have something in mind to repay her for the favor then." He set her free from his arms.

"Enough talking about my sister. What was your convention about, Mr. Steele?"

"Kidnappings and Disappearances. How to avoid being a target."

"Oh, that's great! The one teaching how to avoid the dangerous situations has been the target. And all in the same day. Let's visit Jarvis tomorrow. With Frances on the other side of the phone line, waiting for the first opportunity to torture us, we don't have a chance to think about dessert tonight, Mr. Steele. Let's go for the minor collateral damage. Put the rest of the dinner in the fridge. We have a Halloween visit to make to Tarzana."

"It's going to be a long night...and I don't particularly like the book I've started... " Said, Mr. Steele.

"North by Northwest, 1959", retorted Laura.

"Hmm, you are getting better every day, Miss Holt."

"Just wait and you will get an idea about my excellence, Mr. Steele."

"I'm sure I will, Miss Holt, I'm sure I will."

They worked together getting all the left outs to the kitchen, and once they were already safe in the fridge, she gave him a peck on his mouth, turned on her heels, and walked out of the apartment, Mr. Steele following her steps.

"I'll be following you until I get my dessert, Miss Holt." He told her as a warning.

"I count on that, Mr. Steele," she answered, smiling.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Mildred was working on her usual morning routines when Miss Holt arrived at the office. "Good morning Mildred."

"Good morning Miss Holt. You look tired today. Not enough rest?"

"A long night at Frances's and after that, some procedures at the Police Station. Remember her call yesterday? The woman she was worried about was the same woman that was supposed to be the main speaker at Mr. Steele's conference yesterday. She never appeared at the hotel. Frances was right, and the woman is missing. Her son is still at Frances', and the Police started an investigation to find her.

"So, there was no date after all?" The secretary asked.

"We did have dinner together, but Frances called around 9:00, and after that, we had a hectic evening."

"Morning, morning, morning," said Mr. Steele. After the dubious end of the previous evening being spent with a hysterical Frances almost crying in his arms, instead of a romantic dinner with Laura; the only two things he had in mind that morning were tea and the newspaper. He'd have to get fast into his office to avoid Laura's radar.

"Morning boss!" said a cheerful Mildred "I'll bring you your tea in a minute boss, and the paper is on your desk."

He walked into his office and asked from there, "Where did you say the paper is?"

Right then, the connecting door opened, and Miss Holt walked in, a newspaper in hand.

"Good morning, Laura." He gave a look at her noticing her tiredness. "After our long visit to your sister's, I thought you'd be at the office later than usual this morning."

"What made you think that? We have a case to solve, the fact that my sister is involved in it doesn't make any difference," she told him, all business. But then she thought about it for an instant. "In fact, it makes it different. We are going to have her breathing on our necks until we solve it." She rolled her eyes and begged for patience. "Let's start to work! The faster we get this moving, the better."

Just when Laura left the office, Mildred came in with Mr. Steele's tea. Realizing he could analyze the previous evening from a different angle, she took the chance to spend some valuable time with her boss and maybe, But once Mr. Steele started, she couldn't help but ask for some juicy info about their date.

One thing led to another, and when Laura walked from of her office to Mildred's desk, the secretary wasn't back yet from Mr. Steele's morning routines expedition. "What's happening with everybody here today? Am I the only one working?" She asked herself walking back to her office***

Later, once Laura managed to have Mildred getting some work done, she began to read the files about Suzanne Austin and her Security Company. At first sight, the company didn't seem to be having economic trouble. It was in good health, with financial earnings, and no debts. The company had three equal partners. Suzanne, her husband Arthur Austin, and a third partner, Paul Murtagh, an engineer from Ohio. Her husband was the Director. It was odd Frances not mentioning anything about him. If there was something that her sister loved, it was to talk about married people working together. Just like what she wanted to do with Donald. Thankfully, France's husband didn't agree with that, and suggested her to stay at home enjoying the kids and her bridge parties, thought Laura. The risk of him running away from Frances if she'd insisted in working beside him would have increased enormously. They'd had a brief example about her brother in law's feelings when they worked on that case at the Dentist Convention. When Frances said she would return to study to be a dental assistant, he almost fainted.

It was an exciting thing that Suzanne was the front face of the company. She used to be the one attending compromises outside the office, just meeting clients or as a speaker at any convention. She had a degree in Personal Security Defense. And as anyone could notice, she was a competent professional while managing contracts and giving lectures about her specialty.

In the 80's world, it was at least unusual for a company with two men on its Board, that it would choose its only woman to be the front face for its business. Laura'd experienced that on her own skin from the beginning.

She walked the few steps to Mr. Steele's office ready to share with him her recent discoveries. But when she opened the connecting door, she found him deeply asleep on the couch, the newspaper on the third page resting on his lap. She felt pity for him... The tense night and the lack of sleep exhausted him. She approached him, grabbed the paper from his lap, turned off the light and left. He would feel better after a little nap.

In the meantime, she decided to go to Mrs. Austin's company to pay a visit to her husband. Another unusual fact about the case was that it was Frances the one noticing Suzanne's disappearance and not her husband. He hadn't been at home the previous night and didn't call the police yet to report his wife as a missing person either.

Miss Holt arrived at Austin Security & Co. and went straight to the director's office. She told the secretary that she wanted to talk to Mr. Austin.

"I'm sorry, but do you have a meeting scheduled?" asked the secretary.

"No, I don't. I'm Laura Holt. Frances Piper's sister. I think Mr. Austin would know her. Their sons are good friends, and they live on the same street." She didn't tell the woman she was a PI, just in case.

The assistant passed the message to her boss and then escorted Laura to Mr. Austin's office.

"Good afternoon Mr. Austin, I'm Laura Holt, Frances Piper's sister."

"Good afternoon, Miss Holt. What can I do for you?"

"My sister Frances is worried, because your son Mike was spending Halloween night at her place, and yesterday when she brought him back home, there was nobody there. She says that your wife Suzanne is always there to receive him. Mike is still at my sister's house, in fact."

"I am very sorry, Miss Holt. I didn't know about that. I'll pick him up. Would you give me your sister's phone number, so I can give her a call? I'm afraid I don't have it with me."

"Sure. But Mr. Austin is everything ok with Suzanne? Do you mind if I ask? We are pretty worried about her. My sister didn't say anything to Mike yet, but he is starting to suspect something is not right."

"Everything is okay with her. She used to do these things in the past. Sometimes she needs some time alone and walks away for a while. She always lets me know when that happens so I can take care of Mike. But as I was out on business, she might have missed to warn me this time. I'll talk to her once she's back. "He got up then, "Thank you, Miss Holt. If you'll excuse me, I have a meeting in ten minutes. Please give your sister's phone number to my secretary so I can make the call. Thank you." And with that, he shook Laura's hand, ending the meeting abruptly.

She returned to the office thinking about what had happened. Mr. Austin was very calm, but at the same time, she noticed he was eager to get rid of her. Something was wrong. She could feel it.

It was late in the afternoon when she arrived at Century City. Mildred was ready to leave, and Mr. Steele…he had been faster. There was no trail of him at the office.

That man… She could not leave him out of her sight for an instant. She went into her office and dialed the limo's number. "Hello, Fred. Is Mr. Steele with you?"

"Yes, Miss Holt. But he can't answer the phone. He is not here at the moment," said Fred.

"Where are you?" She asked, trying to remain calm.

"We are at The Huntington Sheraton, Miss Holt."

"Okay. Please tell him to call me at the office as soon as possible Fred. It's important."

"Yes, Miss Holt. I'll tell him."

Mr. Steele was inside the hotel, and, despite the thoughts of Laura, he was working on the case. When he'd fell asleep earlier, reading the paper, he'd noticed an article of the recently failed convention in it. But another interesting article caught his eye as well. An article promoting a new armored car system allowed for civil use, developed by an Army supplier. The introduction was going to be at the Huntington.

He scurried into the salon and found the display almost ready. It was a well-done example to avoid being kidnapped or killed inside a vehicle while using this system. Reading the explanations beside the exhibited device, he learned that Kevlar was the security material and that the car had to be entirely disabled for putting the panels inside.

With that information, he left the salon. It looked like there could be a connection with the matter they were investigating. When he arrived at the limo, Fred told him that Miss Holt was at the office waiting for his call. But he wanted to exchange his new knowledge in person with her. At that time she would have something to share, too. And after that brief exchange, they would leave to restart the matter they'd left unfinished the previous night. "To the office, Fred," he said.

"It was about time you made an appearance!" said Laura when he entered her office.

"I don't know why you are looking at me like that, Laura. I was working. And I found something interesting, really interesting." He told her, exacerbating her intrigue.

"What did you find?"She asked, her face changing from serious to curious in a wink.

He told her about the armored car system, the material, and everything else he had found.

"I can´t find the connection yet," said Laura.

"I can't find the connection either, Laura. But I'm not the trained PI here. That's you. I'm merely the chief trying to look as if I am the capable one looking as if I am doing some serious research from time to time." He stared at her waiting for a smart response.

She sighed. "Let's call it a day. We will find the connection tomorrow," said an overtaken Laura. Too much of this for one day, she thought.

He approached her private space, embraced her, and speaking in almost a whisper over her mouth, he asked: "Your place or mine?"

"Your place and mine," she answered him.

He couldn't avoid the smile on his face. "Are we going to spend a busy night, Miss Holt?"

"Actually, Mr. Steele, as you had the chance to have a decent nap at the office this afternoon, you should be rested. But if I must remind you I didn't have my chance to rest yet. So, I'll take you home, and after that I'm going to my place, to enjoy a lovely shower, have some fruit, and spend the rest of the night resting on my comfortable bed."

"Why don't we go to your loft…," he said, but she interrupted him putting her finger on his lips.

"Your place and mine," she said looking directly into his eyes.

"My place and yours, Miss Holt. After you." And he showed her the way, the man always a gentleman

Laura started the next day with Frances's call. It was near 8:00 o'clock, and the woman was as eager to speak as if it were lunchtime. Laura told her sister to slow down and to call her later at the office. But she'd omitted to say a slight detail to her sister. She was going to be out until lunch. Detective Jarvis had called back to the office and left a message for her. He had some interesting information about Suzanne Austin.

She drove first to pick up Mr. Steele at Rossmore, and they went together to meet Jarvis. On their way to the Police Department, Laura shared with Mr. Steele some of her conclusions. She was suspecting that Mr. and Mrs. Austin weren't living together. It looked as if they were divorced or something like that. But it was weird, that if Mrs. Austin was missing, Mr. Austin didn't realize it. Even if they weren't living together, he should have noticed. They have a son. Wouldn't they talk every day about the boy? And if not about the boy, wouldn't they be acquainted about each other's work schedule?

Then, Mr. Steele added "But what if they are not divorced, but just separated. This has nothing to do with her taking time. She wouldn't go anywhere for two days without telling anybody, Laura. The woman must be in trouble. Nobody disappears from the face of the earth leaving a kid with some neighbors without warning even the husband. A mother would have taken care of that." he said, taking his eyes from the wheel to his partner.

"I think you are right... Let's see what Jarvis has found for us."

The news sounded a bit frightening. But at the same time, the case was starting to take form. Jarvis told them that Austin Security & Co was interested in starting its business in shielding. They had asked permission of the US Defense Department, to represent the SS & Co, an Army supplier, getting into a new work area. It was top secret until the deal would be sealed. The angles the contract included must be kept under seven keys.

"It seems that Austin Security is dabbling into a new interesting but dangerous business. It's the first step to enter the weapons market. Once they get that permission, they will be closer to be licensed to buy and sell guns all over the world. A huge step for a medium enterprise," said Laura, trying to sound less worried than she was.

"Do you think Mr. Austin has something to do with his wife's disappearance? Adding the news Jarvis had delivered to the facts Mildred had found, it looks like Suzanne would be the one closing the deal to the new business. But why would her disappearance be convenient if she was heading the deal? I can tell it would be not good for her company if they were in the right way. But what if they were having trouble to seal the deal? Or what if there is another company interested?" He looked at her, but Laura was miles away from him. "Laura? Are you listening to me?" he asked.

Laura was navigating in her own detective parallel world. Two words were still bouncing in her mind since they'd left the Police Department. The first one was shielding, and the second one was weapons-market. "Is it usual for the companies providing security to ordinary people to be working with weapons banned for that kind of customer?" she asked him, not noticing that he was waiting for an answer from her.

"I think we need to slow down and compare ideas. What do you think about an early lunch? Maybe a nice dish of pasta would inspire us to elaborate some theories about the case," he told her praying for an affirmative answer.

"If that will put you in a work mood, let's go then. I think I need to slow down a bit, too."

They went to a nice restaurant between Century City and Austin Security. The place wasn't full, but there were a lot of businessmen looking as if they were trying to seal important deals. Everybody was immersed in conversations, and the restaurant phone was taken from table to table with phone calls directed to each client.

Mr. Steele and Laura were guided to a table beside a window. Those were the only available. Nobody wanted to be talking business with a possible partner or client in public sight. Privacy was one of the most valuable things there. Once they had ordered, Laura started her PI inner routine, her eyes roaming all along the visitors' faces. Mr. Steele was looking at her. He was amused while appreciative of her indomitable instincts. But he was afraid that if she didn't get distracted soon, the lunch would be over before it started. As always, she would find something urgent to return to business.

"You are looking fantastic today, Laura. Did you enjoy your rest last night? I missed you at dinner." He smiled and put his hand over hers.

"We are getting used to having dinner together, are we?" she said smiling, interlacing her fingers with his on the table. "I missed you too, but I was exhausted. Believe me, the thought of an evening having one of your wonderful dinners was tempting, but I had no strength left."

"I wish I would find you some time with no strength. The thought seems at least unusual. You are the strongest woman I've ever met, Miss Holt. Sometimes I ask myself what my life would be without your powerful presence in it," he told her.

"Less arduous, for sure," she said.

"Less arduous, less amorous and overall, less life. I can't imagine my life without you, without your Remington Steele in it."

"I can't imagine that either." She told him looking at their hands. And then she looked up to find his eyes, and they shared an intense moment that only vanished when the waiter arrived with their order. The spell was broken. They separated their hands and started to eat their meal avoiding each other's eyes. It wasn't the place. There would be time for that later.

But Mr. Steele's idea worked. He got her out of her PI mood for the rest of the meal. And he joined her on the ride. Both were smiling at each other when they arrived at the office later. Mildred noticed their good mood, and instead of trying to pull out some gossip about their whereabouts during the morning and lunchtime, she only welcomed them with a "good afternoon kids," and resisted the need to ask for more. A lot of strength was needed.

The afternoon happened as usual at the office. Everyone working at their own place; Mr. Steele doing his beloved paperwork, Mildred running an impossible search in her computer, and Miss Holt trying to figure out a connection between all the clues they had at hand. Her desk was entirely covered with papers and files. She was reading a record when she noticed a picture of her nieces and nephew in their latest Halloween's costumes. They looked so cute. Danny was taller now, he was growing up fast. But the girls were still small. Maybe they would end up like their aunt Laura. Not that tall.

She was lost in her reverie when something caught her attention: Halloween. Frances had first told them that when she went to Austin's house, the lights were on, and the candies were still in the bowl inside. And the decorations too were still in place. Bingo! She'd found something. She entered Mr. Steele's office, startling him from his tedious task. "I think I've found something," she said. "Remember how Francis told us she found Austin's house that afternoon?"

"Well, yes, I remember."

"Nothing was out of order. Suzanne left everything in place for Halloween. She had been at home getting all the things ready for the afternoon before going to your convention. She should have been back at home ready to start Halloween after work. She disappeared between the moment she left home and the convention time. She didn't want to go anywhere to think. She was ready to spend Halloween looking out for her son having fun up and down the street, just like Frances. Except that she didn't have the chance to do it. She was forced to miss it."

"I didn't have any Halloween in my life, Laura. I don't know what the usual thing to do is. I'll have to follow you on this one," he said, leaving his pen on the desk, looking at her and reclining in his chair.

"We might have something to do tonight, Mr. Steele. What do you think about a stakeout night?" said Laura, sitting on his desk, and giving him an excited look.

"A stakeout night? Tonight?" he answered with his crooked smile. "Does that mean I'll get my dessert tonight if I'm in disguise in black?"

"It means we are going to have our private…" she said, and deliberately stopped and approached nearer to him wearing a dazzling smile.

He was drooling himself with the idea of them all dressed in black after a stakeout night, playing with their favorite dessert. And she was having fun playing along with him.

"…investigative party working together," she ended.

"No dessert?"

"You'll have your dessert once the case is over, Mr. Steele."

"I'm counting on it, Miss Holt."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

The night was dark, and the moon was the most wonderful one they had seen in a long time. The sky in the suburbs was more transparent than in the city. They didn't have the chance to appreciate this kind of dark sky with a white moon and full of stars in the city too often. They'd left the Rabbit a couple of blocks behind. Laura didn't want to give Frances the chance of milling about the place. They kneeled down behind a bush, hiding from Austin's front porch, and from Piper's house, too.

Everything was quiet. All the families were at home, and the lights were turning off little by little down the street. There was a car parked outside Suzanne's house. It seemed to be Arthur's car. It was a red hatchback, a vehicle not usual for a woman with a family. The garage door was closed. The lights inside the house had been turning off from downstairs to upstairs. After half an hour, almost all the house was dark. But then, a light that seemed to be from the stairs was turned on. There wasn't another visible movement. The basement was also dark at the moment.

"Look!" said Mr. Steele, "Somebody is in the basement with a lantern."

"How do you know?" She asked.

"Pay attention to the frame of the basement window. It looks like somebody put a dark curtain there, but you can see a fine line of light getting out from the edge, a very tiny light. Can you see it?"

"Yes, I can see it now that you've told me. What do you suppose is it? Maybe we could get near that window just a little," said Laura starting to move near the house.

"Wait! Somebody is coming out! Stay in place!" Mr. Steele shouted in a whisper.

Then they stood almost frozen in the dark, as the garage door opened. Both detectives were able to see Suzanne's car inside there. Arthur got out of the house carrying a heavy and big garbage bag. He didn't put it into the street's trash can. He put it into his car's trunk. Starting to fear the worst, the detectives ran to the car just at the second after he got into the house again.

"Come on, Mr. Steele! Open the trunk!"

"Icy calm, Laura, I'm trying!" After a brief battle with the lock, he finally opened it. They stared at the black garbage bag, just hoping to see it moving. But it was static. Then Mr. Steele started to work on the top when a voice sounded behind them.

"What are you doing to my car? Who are you? Miss Holt!"

"Good evening, Mr. Austin. I think you have some explanations to give," said Laura. "What do you have in that black bag?"

"There are papers in there. Not your business, by the way. Why do I owe you an explanation? Who is he?"

"I'm Remington Steele, Miss Holt's associate. We are Private Investigators. Why are you carrying papers into your car at this hour of the night?" The question sounded at least weak, but he wasn't going to let Austin interrogate them.

"I don't have to answer anything, but since you are here trying to find my wife, I'll let you see."

He opened the bag, and it was full of papers. There was nothing suspicious. After a brief exchange, Austin invited them into the house. They asked for permission to take a look at the place, and he agreed. They didn't find anything. Austin explained that he went to the basement with a flashlight because the bulb was burned out. He wanted to carry those papers to the office the next day, and that was all. There was no reason not to believe him. He explained that his wife was out, the same explanation he'd given to Miss Holt earlier and that he was taking care of his son. He hadn't noticed she wasn't at home until Laura told him, because he'd been out of town on business, and he'd returned in the morning and went directly from the airport to the office. He'd spoken with his wife the day she disappeared and didn't know anything about her since then.

"Why didn't you tell Frances about that?" asked Laura.

"I suppose you know your sister, Miss Holt. I know her too. She is a little scandalous. If she knew anything, she would be distributing the information to the whole neighborhood in a minute. And we couldn´t allow that. It was risky."

Laura nodded, knowing that the man was right. Frances would have scattered the issue along to the whole neighborhood.

"So, when did you find that Suzanne was in trouble?" asked Steele.

"I received a phone call this afternoon. A man's voice told me to carry to the office all the papers I put in the car. Someone would pick them up there. There are a lot of files, contracts, and some documents there. I don't know who made the call. But it was related to the company and with our future contract for sure. Look, the only thing I want now is to have Suzanne back. The contract is not important. But if I make a wrong move, it will make things worse. I'm trying to do what they ask, and after that, I hope this will end. I never thought we would be in this position just for trying to sign a contract. But it seems our line of work has thin edges."

"Why didn't you call the police?" asked Laura.

"It's a requirement settled in the contract. As we signed a confidentiality agreement to apply to the new business, top secret, you know, we were not able to be in touch with any security force about it, until the agreement is done. To break that means the end of the deal or an end in jail. I can't afford that now. One of us must be free trying to get a solution to this mess. I think I'll need your agency services, Mr. Steele. Would you help me?"

"I think we are in the middle of this case already. No chance to get rid of us Austin," said Steele.

"What does each of the three partners in your company do, Mr. Austin?" asked Laura.

"Suzanne is in charge of the Public Relationships, Paul is an engineer, and makes layouts and security studies, every part of the operative work, and I am in charge of paperwork."

"Paperwork?" asked Steele. "Do you find paperwork interesting enough?" he asked, getting a disapproving look from Laura.

"I don't find paperwork as a real challenge, but someone has to do it."

"I count on the great help of Miss Holt to save me from paperwork. She loves it," he said.

They followed trying to find a gap in the whole situation that would allow them to find Suzanne, without success. Even when they asked permission to go downstairs to the basement and found nothing in there.

Later, in the car, Laura asked him," Do you really think that about paperwork? That it's a boring thing and not challenging enough? Do you really think I love paperwork? I do paperwork because there are rules to follow in our business and someone has to be responsible enough to maintain the order in our files, and have the reports ready for the authorities. I don't love that part of the job, but since you don't show the minimum interest in doing it, the responsibility as the real owner of the agency, leans all on me, "she ended with a hint of displeasure on her face, looking to any place but to him.

He drove for the rest of the way thinking in silence, trying to understand that woman. She really loves her work, the adventure, resolving riddles, and she seems to enjoy paperwork too. Why does she need him doing it also? Would it be a kind of legal punishment after his mistakes? Would it be a chance that she was tired of it? Or was it merely a way to feel they shared everything equally? Maybe if he put a bit more interest in the subject, she would trust in him a little more, and open a new door to let him get into the part of her life that was still closed. He should think about paperwork. Maybe that tedious task would result in an ace up his sleeve after all.

The next morning, they decided to attend the new armored car system introduction at the Huntington. It was an interesting coincidence that this convention would be at the same week the Austin's was. Both conferences were about personal security, and the attendants would be almost the same.

They told Mildred to call and ask for accreditation for Mr. Steele. Since he was the one with more knowledge about security systems in the agency, he would follow the explanations with ease during the introduction, and maybe he could talk with other members of the attendants and find something useful.

In the meantime, Laura was going to have a talk with Paul Murtagh. He was the only one left on the Company Board they hadn't had a conversation with yet. She went to Austin Security & Co, but Mr. Murtagh wasn't there. He was supposed to be at the same place as Mr. Steele, working. Their company was the one in charge of the security of the event. His secretary informed Laura that he was reviewing the last details before the opening, later that same day. They were hired to provide the security at the whole conference.

Laura decided to go to the Huntington then. But she wasn't going to meet Mr. Steele. She decided to go backstage. Murtagh didn't know her yet, but she knew how he looked. There was a picture at his office of him and the Major shaking hands.

She entered the building through the back door. The event was on the 11th floor. She took the back elevator, and just when the doors were closing, a hand stopped them. It was Murtagh. He was talking to another man dressed in a security uniform.

"The cameras are in place. We have metal sensors on the entrances. Nobody can take pictures or record anything during the conference. Every device must be left at the security stand. Remember to have your walkie-talkies but with the earphones on. Hirsch will be mixing with the public after his speech. Do the right thing," he told the guard.

They arrived on the 11th floor, got out of the elevator, and Laura went to the dressing room looking for a disguise to get her mixed with the workers. But when she arrived at the dressing room, the only uniforms available hanging on the clothes rack were the ones for the saleswomen. Well, that would be, if the women in those disguises would be selling any product. The outfits were dangerously scarce. But as there wasn't any other choice, she took one from the hanger.

In the meantime, Mr. Steele was speaking with some members of the attendance. The conference was ready to start, everybody at their place. Like every businessmen presentation, the first thing that appeared in the scene was the saleswomen, and they took their place in different parts of the salon. Mr. Steele was delighted with the show. Who would suspect that a boring security conference would end up being so…instructive? One girl was more beautiful than the other one. And they were spreading smiles all over the place. He changed his angle to review all the beauties scattered around the salon, and stopped almost in shock over one particular face: Laura! She was supposed to be at Muztagh's office, not here. He tried to think of a subtle way to get out of his place. At the same time, he set his sight on her, trying to make eye contact. But her eyes were looking in a different direction.

The host started his speech, and the lights dimmed. The focus was set on the display. After a brief introduction, the speaker began his presentation. His face looked familiar to Steele. He had been one of the attendants at the previous conference. On the stage, he introduced himself as Colonel James Hirsch. He had been trained in the army, and after a military career, he started his own security company. He was presenting a new armored car system, allowed for civilian use. The lecture went on, and Miss Holt and Mr. Steele couldn't catch anything out of order in their separate investigations. The speech ended, and everybody stood up to get a closer look at the display. Since Mr. Steele had done that previously, he walked directly to Miss Holt, who was trying to escape from a weird situation with one of the executives there, who was showing more interest in her body than in the new product itself.

"Good afternoon Miss…" said Mr. Steele, looking disapprovingly at Laura's attire."That's, uh, quite a dress you almost have on...What holds it up?" Then he pulled her by her arm, taking her to a safer place. "What are you doing here, Laura? It seems you've forgotten to dress…" he whispered, jealously upset.

"I came here following Murtagh. He is working at the convention. And this was the only attire I found to have the chance to get inside. Remember you're the only one accredited to be here. Did you find anything?" she asked.

Since he wasn't happy with Laura's lack of clothes, and the lusty looks she was getting from the men there, he started to act like a typical man at the convention, trying to convey her attention. He positioned her against the wall and stood in front of her just as if they were talking lightly business. "I think I know the speaker from somewhere. His face is so familiar." Laura looked at the man, and then she recognized him. "He was in some pictures at Murtagh's office. I think they were with the Major in one of them."

"So, they know each other. Maybe this is the first step, Laura. Let's get out of here. You are going to get a cough, undressed like that." He took her by her arm, and almost carried her out of the salon. On their way, they were interrupted by a man. "Hello, Mr. Steele! Remember me? I'm Robert Wood. The St. George Congregation's case. How are you? Is Miss Holt here with you?" the man asked.

"Hello, Robert! How are you?" He said, trying to hide Laura behind him. The man was a member of the St. George's church, a very conservative one, and they'd worked for him on a case the previous year. He started to take steps backward pushing Laura behind him, trying to hide her from Wood. She was trying to remain as thin as a paper.

"Miss Holt is not here, she's back at the office attending some urgent issues. Please, excuse me my good man, but I really have to go."

Wood took a step back, "Give her my regards, Mr. Steele. She's such a serious worker. There are not more employees as serious as her anymore. Just take a look in here."

"You are a wise man, Wood. Keep going like that," answered Mr. Steele still maneuvering in front of Laura to keep her safe.

Just when they were out of Wood's sight, she told him, "At least one client recognizes my abilities…Ouch, Mr. Steele, don't drag me like that! Wait! I have to change. My clothes are in there." They went to the dressing room, and finally, she came out fully dressed.

"Let's go to Austin's office. We need to talk with him," Steele said, sounding a lot calmer than earlier.

"How well do you know your partner, Mr. Austin?" asked Laura.

"We've known each other for about fifteen years. We worked for the same company while were students at Stanford. Once we got our degrees, we started our own company. We started small, but after a few years we earned some, and here we are, trying to grow as big as the business would allow us," said Austin

"Does he know Colonel James Hirsch?"

"I don't know. Maybe he does. He is in touch with a lot of people because of his kind of work. He is always out of the office, supervising operations and in touch with more different company's staff than I am. He does the fieldwork while Suzanne and I work more at the office with executive staffs."

"How does he work with your wife? Do they get along well?" asked Steele.

"Well, as Suzanne is the one in charge to sells our services, and he is the one that executes them, they use to have their differences, but they get them solved on the way. Do you think he has something to do with Suzanne's disappearance?"

"Do they have any differences in the secret operation your company is trying to participate right now?" Laura asked.

"In fact, they do. Major ones." Then he paused, trying to figure out how to explain it without breaking the secret. "While Suzanne was having doubts about taking the chance of this contract, because of the risk of being a company in a new field, he was convinced that we were perfectly qualified to do it. Now that you mention it, he was willing to sign the contract with too much enthusiasm. And he is not the kind of man who gets enthusiastic about anything. You know how engineers are. I didn't realize that before."

"I think we should have a talk with him, Mr. Austin. Do you know when he'll be back to his office?" Laura asked.

"He must be on his way back. Let's wait for him here. I'll tell his secretary to ask him to come to my office just when he arrives. It will be better that way."

They waited for about half an hour until then the door finally opened. Murtagh came inside and looked intrigued to his partner about his visitors... He wasn't used to having visitors at the office.

"Paul, this is Remington Steele, and his associate, Laura Holt. I hired them. They are private detectives, and they're helping me to find Suzanne. She disappeared three days ago."

"Suzanne disappeared? Why didn't you tell me?"

"When I returned from Texas, she hadn't been at home since a day ago. I waited thinking that she was spending some time on her own as she used to do, but then I received an anonymous call, asking for some documents from our current project. I was going to receive a new call to let me know the place to where I should take them. I didn't receive that call yet."

"What papers are we talking about?" asked Murtagh.

"All the new project preliminary studies. I picked them up from my study at home last night."

Mr. Steele and Miss Holt were following the exchange in silence... Suddenly, Murtagh started to look anxious. After a few moments, he went to his office to look for some information Austin asked him about. Mr. Steele made a gesture to Austin to remain in silence, and then he and Laura followed Murtagh to his office, a few steps behind. Once there, they attempted to get rid of the secretary. Using his charm, he had her in his hands in a wink and subtly guided her to the hall, asking her way to Mr.'s Austin office. In the meantime, Laura was listening, her ear glued to Murtagh's office's door. He was making a phone call.

"Hello, Grant. We have problems. There are some detectives here, Remington Steele and his secretary. They are asking questions about Suzanne and the contract. When are you going to bring the signed papers?

"A secretary, thought Laura with resignation. Years and years and never getting a promotion…"

"I´ll bring them tomorrow. We are going to have a talk with Mrs. Security. Then, all you'll have to do is to convince your partner to sign them, too. Once your part of the deal is done, we'll let her free," said the man on the other side of the line.

When he put the phone down, Laura ran away from the door, and from the office. She was in the corridor when she met Mr. Steele. "Did you find anything?" he asked.

"Actually, yes. He phoned someone called Grant and asked him when he was going to bring the signed papers. I think he was speaking about the contract. And he spoke about us. But I don't think we should say anything to Mr. Austin yet. Let's try to find something else," said Laura.

They went to Arthur´s office to say their goodbyes and left the building. When they arrived back at the agency, they asked Mildred to run a search. There was something about the deal that was bothering Laura. Why was Murtagh eager to sign that contract, if Suzanne was against it? There might be something hidden that made the agreement juicy for him, even if it wasn't for the rest of his partners. Maybe a new contract following the first one but including just a part of the board.

Mildred looked through the files she was getting from the printer. There was always important information that only trained eyes like hers were able to discover. Gotcha! There it was. Within her enthusiasm, she went in a hurry to Miss Holt's office, eager to share her find, but once there, she remembered her bosses weren't at the agency. Time had passed without her knowledge, and it was pretty late. She gathered her things, closed the door and started her way to Rossmore.

The bell rang once, twice, and by the third time, she realized that they were not there, but perhaps at Miss Holt's loft. She was leaving a message to Mr. Steele with the doorman when she noticed Miss Holt's car parked in front of the building. She went then to the garage, and the Auburn was there too. She returned to ask the doorman for a phone and called Fred. They weren't using the limo either.

They were tied to a chair, with their mouths taped. Laura was in one room, and Mr. Steele was in a different one. They were caught when they were going to the elevator at Rossmore, and after being hit on their heads, they were taken somewhere else. When they woke from their unconsciousness, they didn't know what had happened to them, and most important, what had happened to each other. A man was watching Mr. Steele, playing with a knife in his hands. A gun rested over the table beside him.

Mildred went to the loft and didn't find anyone there either. At this point, she was distraught. The only time she remembered something like that happening, was when they were supposed to be murdered. She thought about calling Jarvis, but after that nasty experience, she feared he might put his finger on her. And her bosses would be in trouble again, without her being free to help them. She might be the one to find the way out of this trouble, and all alone.

Mr. Steele started to recover, waking up in a place looking like a basement. The man stood up, closed the door, turned on the music loud, and took the tape from Steele's mouth. "What do you know about the contract?" he asked.

"What contract? I don't know anything about a contract. What are you talking about?" answered Mr. Steele.

"I think you're not telling me the truth, detective. You know that it's not convenient."

"Well, it depends. Not convenient for me or not convenient for you?"

"Maybe not convenient for both of us," answered the man.

"Where is Laura?" he asked.

"Mmmm… Laura. This doesn't sound as how you should be addressed to a business associate. Is she more than an associate, then? She looks fine to be more than a partner to me."

"What have you done to her?" asked Steele, showing a little more anger in his voice.

"Don't worry. We didn't do anything to her, yet. You're making me feel like we are asking the questions to the wrong person. Should we start with her? It would be more pleasant to have a nice chat with someone as pretty as she. Don't you think? And I'm sure I'd find ways to convince her to be more cooperative…"

"Don't you dare to do something to her…" but the man knocked him on his jaw, putting him out of himself for an instant, and then left the room.

Laura was trying to find her bearings when the man came into the room. She was with her mouth still taped, and tied to the chair. The man walked to her, and in a husky voice, he whispered in her ear, "Laura, if you want to save him, you have to sing. I am sure you can sing like a Mockingbird." He stroked her jaw line, while she closed her eyes, trying to escape from this awful reality she was walking in.

"What do you know about the contract? Are you ready to tell me?"

Just when she was telling the man she wasn't going to say anything, just moving her head, she heard another voice that froze her. It was a known voice, but she wasn't able to place the owner.

Mildred was now on her way to look for help. It wasn't going to be easy, but she was the only one able to help her without causing more trouble. Well, that was her general idea. She parked her car in front of Frances's house. She was sure that Miss Holt would kill her if something happened to her sister, but Mildred was confident in Mrs. Piper's abilities. She was Laura's sister after all. She got out of the car and walked to the door. It was late, and the lights were already off. She rang the bell, and in a flash, Frances opened the door. "Mildred! What are you doing here? Did something happen to Laura? Oh my God! Donald! Mildred is here! Come down! It's Laura!"

Then Mildred, who was expecting just this kind of welcome from Frances, put her hand on the woman's mouth. "Shh, Mrs. Piper, Frances! You are going to wake everybody in the neighborhood, and that is the last thing we need." And then she pushed Frances back, entered the house, and closed the door behind her. Once Donald was down there with them, Mildred told them the latest news of the case, and that when she was going to address Miss Holt and Mr. Steele about her most recent discovery, she couldn't find them, although both their cars were parked at Rossmore.

Laura's wrists were hurting a lot. They were tied very tight on her back. The position wasn't helping. She tried to move to get the blood to reach her fingers. There was a quiet silence in the room, and it was cold. She thought about Mr. Steele, and about what had happened to him after they were trapped. She was immersed in those thoughts when she heard a noise. It was like a rhythmic sound. She concentrated hard, and after a few minutes, she knew what it was. Somebody was using Morse code. That was going to be hard. She knew how to use that Code, but the last time she'd rehearsed it was before getting her license, a long time ago.

"Ok, Laura. Focus", she told herself. After what seemed an eternity, she could figure out two words. One of them was an "SOS," and the other was "SA." "SA…" she couldn't remember what that meant, until, of course, she knew it: Suzanne Austin. She seemed to be kidnapped there too. But her mouth was probably taped as Laura's was. She was feeling powerless because she wasn't able to say anything to the woman either. "Mr. Steele, where are you?" she thought. But then, an idea came to her mind. At least those hated high heels could be useful for once. She started to knock her heel to the floor, trying to make Morse sounds, and praying to be heard only by the woman. "Steele here," she tapped. It worked. The woman stopped her sounds until Laura ended hers. Then she answered something but Miss Holt couldn't figure out what it was. There was a silence after that. Another round of the same sounds. This time she understood. "PM." This was getting worse every second. They would have to get out of there, she thought. It was getting dangerous, very dangerous.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

After telling them about her discoveries, Mildred instructed the Pipers about her plan and about why she was there asking them for help. When she'd been doing research about Paul Murtagh, something unexpected popped out. He was an engineer, but before starting his studies, he'd been in the Army. Mr. Austin had told Miss Holt and Mr. Steele that they'd studied together, but then, Mr. Austin had never joined the Army. And once Mildred deepened the research, she found that Murtagh had been under the orders of Colonel James Hirsch at the beginning. But some time later, Murtagh was kicked out of the Army. He had a secret military trial and was expelled from the force. He finished his engineering studies and started his own business. And now, after many years, Murtagh and Hirsch were mixed in business together again. But the news didn't end there. Murtagh had a bank account outside the country, in Panamá. And there was a lot of money there. It seemed that it was dirty money. When she continued her search focusing on Hirsch, she found that at times the amounts were credited to Murtagh's account, the same numbers were debited from Hirsch's one. Hirsch was paying money to Murtagh. But at this point, something new popped out: Austin was the co-owner of Murtagh's account, but with a figurehead. A man from Panama. He'd joined Austin in other business there as well. Paul Austin was a part of this mess. Mildred was suspecting that Miss Holt, Mr. Steele, and Mrs. Austin were kidnapped at the Austin's house.

"Oh, my God! What are we going to do?" Frances said almost crying.

"Stay calm, Mrs. Piper. I have a plan," Mildred told Frances. Then she stood up as in charge being of the situation and told them the three of them would work together to do the rescue... The couple listened to her explanation like the good pupils they were.

Once Mr. and Mrs. Piper were ready, he dressed all in black to work on a stakeout; they walked through the front garden to the Austin's house. Frances rang the bell, and Mildred and Donald remained hidden behind some bushes. When the door opened, and Mr. Austin noticed who was there, he tried to get rid of Frances immediately, closing the door in a hurry. But Frances 'foot was faster, and once he realized he had no way out, he opened it and tried to play good neighbor with Mrs. Piper.

"Hello, Arthur," said Frances. "I am seriously worried about Suzanne. I noticed some lights on and decided to make you a visit. Do you have any news? May I come in?" But she was already inside and dragging him with her to the living room. Mildred and Donald waited quietly until the door was shut. Then they ran to the backyard, and once they found the basement window, they kneeled down there quietly, trying to catch anything from inside. But there wasn't any sound. He opened the window very carefully then, and Mr. Steele was there. He looked terrible and was tied to a chair, his mouth taped. Mildred shushed to him, and he looked up. Then she made a gesture telling him that everything was going to be right and closed the window. They wouldn't have a lot of time, but if they could have Mr. Steele joining them, the rescue operation would run faster.

The window was a small one, and it was far from the basement's floor. The wise move was to get Donald inside to untie Mr. Steele, while Mildred remained outside watching. They did that, and in a moment, Mr. Steele was free. The men got out of the basement, and Mildred couldn't help hugging her boss. He mouthed a very special thank you for her. He didn't know anything about Laura, where she was, or if she was being watched. And found out his rescuers didn't either

They walked cautiously around the house, peering through every window. A woman, who seemed to be Suzanne, was in the laundry room, and Laura was in the utility room. Both were tied to their chairs and had their mouths taped. The first thing they would have to do would be to wait until Frances was out of the house. With her already safe, they could get inside to rescue the two women. They remained there for some time, and then Mrs. Piper returned to her house as planned. Then Mr. Steele got into the laundry room and freed Suzanne. He helped her to get out, and told her to run to Piper's house. She did as she was told. Mildred was watching everything, ready to alert Mr. Steele if she noticed any movements. When he was prepared to get inside Laura's cell, he had to stop abruptly because a man came inside the room.

"Bloody hell," he thought. He would have to wait, and Laura was in danger now. She was the only one left inside. If the man realized that his other two prisoners weren't there anymore, he might act against her. Just realizing that Mildred told him that she was going to distract Austin. He nodded and waited. The man was still speaking to Laura, standing right behind her. Mildred went back to Frances' house and returned driving her car in zigzags, like a drunk driver. She made her final turn against Suzanne's garage door. There was a big noise. She was starting to get used to doing this number in Frances's neighborhood. The garage door almost left its frame, and the car's horn got stuck. Several lights turned on all around the neighborhood. In a second there were a lot of people in their robes, looking at her and at the damage she'd provoked. Arthur opened the door and got out of the house. Behind him appeared a huge man, who had the looks of a bodyguard. Austin couldn't believe what had happened. However, he didn't know Mildred, so she wasn't actually in danger about being discovered. She tried to explain to him what had happened, acting like an old drunk. In the meantime, somebody had the smart idea to call the police, with the thought that it would be good for Arthur to have them there before that crazy lady would run away leaving him in such a mess.

Once Mildred drove her car into the Austin's garage, Mr. Steele waited until he saw the two men outside, and jumped through the window to take Laura out of that place. It took just a minute. They ran away very fast to Frances' house and met there with Suzanne, who was ready to appear on the scene with the first sound of sirens. The police arrived, and everyone got out of the house. When they saw Detective Jarvis, Laura called him and asked him to catch Arthur and the other man. He did as he was told, yet a bit unconvinced about receiving orders from the detective... But something told him that Miss Holt knew something that he didn't. He gave the order, and a couple of agents caught the bad guys and handcuffed them. Jarvis looked then to Miss Holt and told her, "I won't ask why you are always giving me orders, Miss Holt. But, don't you care to elaborate?"" He was smiling, some gratitude plastered on his face. After all, thanks to Miss Holt, a lot of his work was getting easier.

"Just follow my orders, and you will find your work done without a lot of effort, Detective Jarvis," Laura retorted.

Then Suzanne appeared, and Laura introduced her to Jarvis. "Here is our missing person, Detective. You will have to thank another woman this time, not me. She did all the work." And she gave a look to Mildred, who wasn't acting drunk anymore but was very happy with the successful end of her rescue operation.

Frances came back from her house, once she saw the police getting Austin and his partner into the police car. Suzanne was giving some explanations to Jarvis, about how she got the clue that something was going wrong. "I was getting the things ready for Halloween when Paul came to my house. I thought he was there because he wanted to tell me something before my lecture. But just when I let him in, he put a cloth on my face, and everything turned black. Sometime later, when I woke up, I was a prisoner in my own laundry room. A man that I couldn't recognize came in and told me that I was dead if I didn't sign the papers. He showed me a document, in which I gave all the power to my husband and Paul, to finish with the last part of the merger with Hirsch's Company. I refused. At that time, I thought that Murtagh was alone in this. But later, the day following Halloween, Arthur appeared with the man and told me the same thing. It was a matter of time. If the two of them were involved in the kidnapping, and in the business operation, once they got what they wanted, I was going to be out of the picture. I'd seen their faces…So, I denied signing those papers, hoping for the crime not going that far, and someone would rescue me. You know what followed."

"But why did they need those papers signed?" asked Jarvis.

Then Mildred, who was in complete silence, trying to absorb every word from Mrs. Austin, opened her mouth. "It seems that Murtagh and Hirsch knew each other from a long time ago. They worked together in the Army, but then Murtagh was involved in some documents disappearance and was expelled. However, Hirsch was never involved in the case. That was strange because he was his superior. The documents were about some illegal weapon sales to a Central America country. It looks like Hirsch was involved in the scandal, but blackmailed Murtagh. Murtagh had an illegal offshore account, and he had been receiving payments for a long time. They are being investigated right now also, in another case that involving guns, drugs, and illegal money. That's when Paul asked Arthur to help. They would have to change their modus operandi, and then Arthur became the unsuspected one receiving the payments. They needed to change the front face of the company because they had the FBI on their tails. So, they invented the merger operation, but then Mrs. Austin was an obstacle to make it happen."

"Didn't you see this coming, Mrs. Austin?" asked Jarvis.

"Would you believe me if I say I didn't?" she sadly answered.

"Sometimes we get to know people very late," said Mildred.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

Laura was ready, waiting for him at the loft. She was dressed for the occasion, and she had all the stuff she would need for the promised surprise, waiting for them in her bedroom. It was going to be a great night. Everything was settled, and the only thing left was him. The champagne was chilling, the table was full of delicacies, and the lights were dimmed. Just when she was turning on the music, the doorbell rang. For once, he was on time. She opened the door to a vampire hidden behind his cape.

"Excuse me," said the vampire, "I was told a witch lives here. Is that right?" He offered then a red rose he had in his hand.

"This witch has been waiting for you for centuries," she answered taking the rose from him. "Do you want to come in?

He couldn't believe it was happening, both of them alone, no case able to interrupt their date, Mildred away with her bowling friends, and a whole night together ahead of them. He came in and walked directly to the table to fill the goblets with the bubbly chilled brew. He handed her one, and they toasted to a late but fulfilling Halloween.

Just when their lips were about to meet, he abruptly stopped, waiting for the unexpected interruption.

But then Laura, with the most sensual voice that a witch could find, told him, "Relax." Then taking the reins of the kiss in her hands asked him, "Trick or treat, Mr. Steele?"

"I think my choice will be the treat, Miss Holt." He looked at her eyes, and holding her tightly against him, told her, "I'm ready."

"So am I, Mr. Steele. So am I."


End file.
